Retail in the US is evolving into an immersive experience, blending convenience, innovation, and creativity to captivate shoppers.
During my recent visit to the US, I toured a host of US retail stores – Walgreens, Super Target, Dick's Sporting Goods, Coca-Cola, Publix Supermarkets and more to explore how these brands are embracing trends, forging clever partnerships, and delivering memorable customer experiences. From seamless integration of digital tools to standout in-store, some of these retailers are redefining what it means to shop in the modern era, but some are not quite hitting the mark.
I rated all the stores I visited out of a possible 5 stars, let’s dive in to see which retailer delivered the standout experience, and which left me with mixed emotions.
Super Target
Super Target isn't just a standard Target store, but more of a department store and supermarket combined, ranging everything from tech, optical, clothing, homewares, grocery items and more. It even has a Starbucks® on site.
What impressed me about the experience?
1. Strong integration between Starbucks and Target
When you pick up your click & collect order from SuperTarget, you can order from Starbucks so your coffee is ready for you when you arrive.
Starbucks offered a range of Target branded food items (cookies and cake pops) that were themed with the Target brand mascot (the Target dog) which reinforced the partnership between the two brands. The Target dog is a real icon in the US, customers buy merchandise including teddy bears and others of the mascot, so the extension of cake pops that align with the mascot is a nice added touch.
2. Instore screens provided strong utility not just ads
Whilst digital screens were prominently featured in-store, the screens didn't just serve ad space but also provided utility, enabling consumers to search and locate products across the store by aisle.
3. Strong retail execution for key moments
Target is activating well for key moments on the retail calendar with its 'snacks and sip' bay for Super Bowl and a dedicated themed destination instore for health to support customers to get fit and healthy in-line with the new year which offered a range of protein and wellness products. This is not new as a concept, many retailers do this, but it is how they are activating it that matters, their approach catches the eye and draws the consumer in, and the range and assortment makes the proposition compelling.
4. Digital navigation to easily find and locate products
Instore screens combined with the app, make it easy for the customer to find | locate products within aisles, which is important in a store the size and scale of a Super Target.
Aside from the experience, the depth, breadth and quality of range was impressive.
Overall experience: 4/5
Publix Supermarkets
Publix is a grocery chain with 1,390 stores across 8 states, with turnover of $US54bn+. Despite their size, they are still not one of the largest locally.
What impressed me about the experience?
1. Coupon Price Matching
Publix price matches coupons from competitors, BUT they must be physically printed off. Coupons both physical and digital are widely adopted by US retailers. As prices have jumped 20%+ in the US over 3 years, coupon matching is a clever tactic to drive switching behaviour of customers. Coupon matching extends to private-label products, an interesting play given the varying quality of private label products in the market.
2. Loyalty program customer identification and sign-up
Like many others, Publix runs a loyalty program which provides many benefits to customers, including $5 off their next shop post sign up. The sign-up process uses the customer’s mobile number as the unique identifier, and it is also used to identify the customer at the POS for perks. Mobile numbers are verified on sign up via SMS code or call, so customers can only sign up once. This eliminates customers signing up multiple times using many different email addresses to gain access to sign up rewards and also helps to improve data quality.
3. A far more delightful out-of-stock experience
The Publix app experience allows customers to choose preferred substitutes if their selected product is OOS, with up to 10 alternatives to choose from. The selection is enabled once an item is added to cart. This feature is good for both retailers and customers as it provides a solution to one of the biggest pain points in the online customer journey. It also means brands | CPGs need to maximise online availability, as the OOS can result in a competitor's product being substituted, and once the customer tries that alternative the customer may switch the brand they buy.
4. A “new and interesting” section to drive discoverability
Consumers, particularly younger ones, like discovering new products. The Publix app provides a ‘new & interesting’ aisle like what you would see from clothing retailers and apparel to enable discoverability of new lines and ranges.
5. Service is still in fashion at Publix
Despite the rise of technology adoption, there were still many team members manning checkouts, even though self-checkout was in place.
The instore experience is hit and miss depending on the store you visit - not uncommon for grocery stores who have huge capital overhead.
Overall experience: 3.5/5
Dicks Sporting Goods
Dick’s Sporting Good’s is our equivalent of Rebel Sport. The chain has 853 outlets across the US, nearly as many as our major supermarkets 😲.
What impressed me about the experience?
1. Exceptional range for the sports enthusiast
The range is extensive, from fan gear, to gear for the amateur sports enthusiast, as well as the largest range of drink bottles, I have ever seen (including a floor to ceiling Stanley display!), it truly is a mecca for sporting goods.
2. “Shoerunner” digital screens take the pain out of finding the right shoe
Have you ever tried to track down a team member to check if the store has the shoe in the size you want? The “Shoe-runner” digital screens in-store ensure customers can gain quick and efficient information about if a shoe is stock in their size. Simply scan any shoe (or search) and immediately see the stock on hand in the store, eliminating the need to request assistance from a team member. Find it in your size and tap the screen to get a team member to bring it to you. Such a simple idea but built around a key re-occurring pain point for customers.
3. Tapping into sneaker culture as part of the digital experience
Sneaker culture is big business, which is why Dick’s make it easy for customers to get the inside scoop on when the latest sneakers will be launched with a sneaker release calendar on their site. Dick’s also offers the ability for customers to go into the draw to buy some of the most exclusive sneakers being released, via the app. The web experience enables customers to set reminders and even pre-order sneakers, which allows Dicks to become a preferred place for people to buy the latest sneakers. Via the app, store-card members (credit card) can enter draws for the most coveted releases – providing “value added reasons” to take out a credit card with Dicks.
Overall experience: 4/5
Coca Cola Store
How much do you love your favourite food or beverage brands? Enough to buy merchandise?
There are few brands that have such a cult following that they are able to launch dedicated retail offerings and activations to engage with their most loyal fans. and The Coca-Cola Company is another.
Coke launched an immersive three-level retail experience within Disney Springs in 2018.
The store merchandise is diverse, ranging from Coke-flavoured ChapSticks, toy trucks and cars, clothing and apparel, sporting gear e.g. baseballs that are branded Coca-Cola and much more.
The third level is a rooftop bar for customers to relax and enjoy a Coke from its extensive range, including assorted international flavours on offer, frozen beverages, smoothies, Coke floats and more.
What impressed me about the experience?
1. Location, location, location
It’s located in a high-traffic area, within a holiday destination - making it the ideal location for people to engage with the brand.
2. It provides a unique experience
Whilst merchandise and drinks are great, the ability to try different Coke varieties from all over the world as well as seasonal flavours - provides unique reasons to engage.
3. It resonates with the audience
It was choc a block, the store was extremely busy with lovers of the brand looking to get their hands on all types of merchandise.
Overall experience: 4.5/5
Walgreens (Miami & Sedona)
My Walgreens experience has left me with mixed emotions. On one hand the promises of the digital experience are impressive, (some features I couldn’t test drive). However, the range instore left me confused.
Partnerships and tie ups between brands are common in the US, and in 2018 Walgreens collaborated with Kroger to deliver a grocery offer in store. This was disbanded in 2023 by both parties; however, some stores still have an extensive grocery range beyond personal care, health and wellbeing and baby.
The grocery range is packed with unhealthy snacks and drinks which feels at odds with what a pharmacy delivers and stands for – better wellness and wellbeing.
Sure, it provides convenience but just because you can sell products doesn’t mean you should.
What impressed me about the experience?
1. Taking the pain out of prescriptions
Walgreens has made the process of transferring a prescription from one pharmacy to another painless. Using the app, simply take a photo of your RX number and pharmacy name from the bottle and Walgreens will start the transfer process. The app allows users to scan medication to refill, and customers can also set up auto-refills for prescriptions, allowing seamless “buy again” features that locks them into buying from Walgreens.
2. Leveraging value to drive loyalty
As price comparison is big in the pharmacy space, their loyalty program is geared to providing a basic 1% off every purchase and 5% off Walmart branded products. Cashback unlocks 5% on all products and 10% on branded products, when the customer also takes out the Walgreens credit card, making the loyalty program deliver significant value for the customer.
3. Text for personalisation at a brand level
SMS is a key promotional tactic used by US retailers, most leverage it instore for a host of promotional based activity. At Walgreens, in-aisle, customers are prompted to text a brand name to receive special coupon offers for that specific brand. This allows customers to receive true 1:1 personalisation as the offers are based on the individual brands a consumer likes and trusts.
The two Walgreens stores I visited were very tired and given the ranging choices in grocery I was underwhelmed by the experience overall.
Overall experience: 3/5
So who takes the crown?
🥇 The Coca-Cola Company came in 1st with 4.5/5
🥈 DICK'S Sporting Goods and Super Target came in joint second with 4/5
🥉 Publix Super Markets sat in fourth with 3.5/5
🏅 and Walgreens came in last with 3/5
I also visited a few other stores during my stint in the US, and whilst I didn’t rate the experience, there were some key learnings and highlights.
Home Depot
Walking into Home Depot is just like walking into a Bunnings store, it’s big box warehouse style and range boasts many similarities to our beloved Bunnings locally.
Home Depot is adopting digital to aid the instore experience more than most, some examples include:
Digital pricing labels: Home Depot is embracing the move to digital price labels adopting digital pricing within key sections of their stores and within sections of the store that contain higher ticket items e.g. white goods and home security devices as examples.
Using sensors and camera technology to better manage replenishment: Home Depot is one of the key retailers now using on-shelf cameras to detect OOS items, with team members receiving notifications to re-plenish OOS items when an item is detected to be OOS.
Throughout the store, Home Depot is also making it easier to self-serve with a series of digital tools designed to aid the customer to do everything from gain an estimate for a new kitchen or carpet, to being able to see how paint colours look within a space.
Aritzia
Walking through SOHO, I happened to come across fashion brand Aritzia.
Their interactive window displays, displaying bigger than Ben-Hur dancing puffers, was one of the best examples of retail theatre I saw during my trip.
This, combined with their photo booth to allow customers to take photos with the oversized jacket to share on social, as well as their second-floor experience, which allows customers to shop their range by colour were some of the highlights of the Aritzia shopping experience.
M&Ms
And finally, an oldie but a goodie, the M&M's retail store in Las Vegas, which has created one of the best retail experiences going around.
The store has four distinct levels, each providing an array of different experiences. The offer the ability to personalise your own M&Ms, with the final product ready within 5 minutes of ordering was a key highlight of the experience.
There is even a clever collaboration with Kate Spade New York within the store for those who want to “bag” a designer M&M bag. Plus, plenty of photo opportunities for the kids.
My visits to these US retail stores showcased a range of experiences, from highly innovative and seamless integrations at Super Target and Publix, to the more niche and fan-driven offerings at Dick’s Sporting Goods and the Coca-Cola Store.
While some retailers have embraced new trends and digital tools to elevate the customer experience, others like Walgreens still have room to improve, especially in terms of their in-store range and overall execution.
Ultimately, the most successful stores were those that blended digital elements to enhance the overall instore experience in a way that demonstrates they clearly understand what their customers want – whether it’s convenience, personalised service, or unique in-store experiences.
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